$30 M proposed for middle school math

Midland Republican Rep. John Moolenaar is pleased that $30 million for middle school math education is part of proposal House Republicans announced Thursday.

The proposal would provide an extra $80 in per-pupil funding for math education for sixth, seventh and eighth graders.

Michigan's K-12 public schools would get $230 per pupil more next fiscal year under the proposal.

The proposed per-pupil increase is $5 more per student than proposed by the state Senate and $30 more than proposed by Democratic Gov. Jennifer Granholm, who would provide part of the increase this fiscal year and part of the increase next fiscal year.

The minimum a school district would receive per pupil - $6,875 this school year - would increase to $7,105 for the fiscal year starting Oct. 1 under the House plan.

Republicans said the investment is needed because the state has raised academic standards, including a revamped mandatory high school curriculum.

Moolenaar was advocating extra money for middle-school math even before state lawmakers and the governor agreed to beef up high school graduation requirements.

"We must get more Michigan students interested in math if we truly want to prepare them for the global, high-tech economy," Moolenaar said in a prepared statement.

"We're making a bold commitment to help our kids prepare for college and succeed in the future," the former charter school administrator added.

"The state has set the bar high with our new curriculum requirements, and our plan gives more Michigan schools the tools necessary to help all students clear the bar," House Speaker Craig DeRoche, R-Novi, said in a statement.

"Education and preparation for the technology jobs of today and tomorrow are the road map for restoring Michigan's economy," Farwell Republican Rep. Tim Moore said in a prepared statement. "Government has a limited ability to directly create jobs, but it can provide the necessary funding to train our students to be ready for them.

"Today's announcement for the highest per-pupil increase proposed for this budget year is a House commitment to making that investment for our children's sake," he added.

"Just as the state's economy has been struggling, so are many school budgets," Moore said. "This puts our children's education and their futures at risk, something Michigan and our communities cannot afford."

Greg Bird, a spokesman for Granholm's budget office, said the governor's proposal provides the "best balance overall" for education funding.

Granholm also wants to boost funding for other school budget items such as adult and early childhood education, Bird said. It remains to be seen how much money House Republicans would put into those programs, he said.

House Republicans said the per-pupil increase would be paid for with a projected surplus in the $13 billion school aid fund.

Leaders from the Legislature's fiscal departments and the Granholm administration will get together May 17 for a fresh look at state revenue projections for the upcoming fiscal year. If the money appears to be available, House Republicans say they also would want to add more money per pupil to the state's lowest-funded districts. The GOP also would like to make more money available for math and science programs.

The Republican plan came a few days after House Democrats said the GOP was planning to reduce aid to K-12 schools.

Republicans had not yet made a per-pupil K-12 funding proposal. But Democrats criticized a Republican proposal to transfer money out of the school aid fund to use for community college and university funding in the next fiscal year.

House Democrats interpreted Thursday's Republican announcement as a victory and said they would "remain vigilant for future attempts to raid K-12 education."

Republicans said Democrats had reacted prematurely to a proposal that had not been made.

The school aid fund transfer is still part of the House proposal, but could be debated when budget negotiations heat up between the House, Senate and Granholm administration.

The proposed transfers from the school aid fund also come from the fund's projected surplus, said Matt Resch, a DeRoche spokesman.

Granholm also has proposed using school aid money for a few programs that now are paid for through the general fund, including school bus inspections and a school breakfast program.

The state Senate has proposed some transfers from the school aid fund to help boost its community college funding proposal.

The transfers would be allowed under the state constitution, but some Democrats and K-12 groups say the move is unprecedented and could start a dangerous trend.

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